Bill Belichick pressed on how much advice Nick Saban gave him on taking North Carolina job

Bill Belichick and Nick Saban are more than a pair of legendary head coaches in football. They’re also good friends, so as Belichick looks to successfully move to the college game, it seemed like Saban could be someone he could lean on for advice.

At his introductory press conference with North Carolina, Belichick was asked about his relationship with Saban and pressed about what advice he may have received about the college game from Saban. However, Belichick was able to stay tight-lipped about any possible conversations that the two may have had.

“Coach Saban and I have a long friendship and relationship,” Bill Belichick said. “I have all the respect in the world. Love Coach Saban. In all honesty, I would just keep our conversations private. I don’t think, really, those are to be shared publicly. I appreciate the question. There’s nobody I respect more than Coach Saban. He’s been a great friend for 40 years.”

While, to this point in his career, Belichick spent his entire career in the NFL, Saban coached at both levels during his career. That included as the defensive coordinator for Belichick with the Cleveland Browns during the 1990s. Later, he would coach the Miami Dolphins as a division rival to Belichick and the New England Patriots.

Still, with seven national championships at the college level, Saban has some insight into what it takes to win at the college level and thanks to the relationship he has with Bill Belichick, it wouldn’t be surprising if the two did have kinds of conversations.

There are several challenges that Belichick will need to manage as he makes the move from a career coaching in the NFL to a college program. That, notably, includes things like recruiting, the transfer portal, and NCAA rules. At the same time, there is some hope that thanks to being the de facto general manager of the Patriots, he’ll also already have experience dealing with players who are being paid and can move to a new program over money.

Belichick is taking over a North Carolina program that went 6-6 during the 2024 season. That means the Tar Heels are currently preparing for a bowl game where they’ll be coached by interim head coach Freddie Kitchens, whom Belichick noted will be remaining on the staff moving forward. That’s the first on-field coaching staff decision that he announced publicly since taking the job.